Usually Israel has little to be happy about as a nation among the nations. But Israel's relief effort in Haiti was so impressive that the world media, for once, praised Israel in amazament of her astonishing rescue operations. Of course Israelis are proud! Here is the story from Israel's point of view.

It was Tuesday, just before midnight in Israel, and before turning in, we switched on Fox News for a few minutes. The anchor announced there had been a 7 plus earthquake in Haiti but no more details were available. We didn’t know the capital of Haiti already lay in ruins.

But Israel’s First Responders sprang into action. Within hours, the Israel Defense Forces dispatched a five-member team to see what assistance would be most useful. Using satellite phones the team reported that thousands of people lay dead or alive under cement slabs and some one million were living on the street while aftershocks continued to rock the city. Israel’s military translated that information as a great need for complex surgical operations of broken and smashed bones and deep wounds.

Israel’s goal was to set up a field hospital in order to provide a first response to the citizens of Haiti until the arrival of additional medical forces from other nations capable of dealing with the magnitude of the situation. Professional volunteers were not a problem. Within minutes of Israel’s decision to send a medical team, the field hospital commander received 200 phone calls. He said more than 300 doctors wanted to volunteer. (Jerusalem Post, 22Jan10)

Meanwhile, Israel’s ambassador to the eastern Caribbean, Amos Radian, was at home in Santo Domingo, when the earthquake hit. He said he felt his house shake “like mad” from the earthquake and aftershocks for 40 minutes.

ISRAELI ENTERPRISE GOES FULL THROTTLE

Radian hitched a ride with a CBS team and arrived 16 hours later in Port-au-Prince to a scene out of hell. He had been in touch with Jerusalem from the Dominican Republic and knew that by Friday two El Al planes loaded with 80 tons of supplies and 250 Israeli medical personnel would be landing in Haiti.

He teamed up with Israel’s command officer who had already arrived with his advance team. They both knew that the mission would fail if the airplanes landed in Haiti and they didn’t have a truck, bus, jeep and location.

“There was little time to fool around. They knew they had about 20 hours until the planes would land and they had nothing finalized.

But Jews live everywhere – even in Haiti – and there is always a vast Jewish network to rely on. As fortune would have it, in Haiti there is a wealthy Jewish family who could donate space and equipment such as water tanks and vehicles.

Ambassador Radian heard this family had survived the earthquake, but because all communications were down, it took the ambassador a day to locate Reuven Shalom Bigio. When he finally found Bigio at a hotel, he told him, “Tomorrow the Israel Air Force is coming with two jets and 250 people and I have no place to put them.”

Bigio’s response was immediate. “Tell me what you need.” By 8:00 a.m. the following day, the two met at an industrial park in Port-au-Prince owned by the Bigio family, along with members of the IDF Home Front Command’s advance team and Bigio offered them a family-owned soccer field to set up the field hospital.

Friday afternoon, the El Al Boeing 777 and IDF jumbo jet landed in Haiti. On board were 250 Israeli medical officers and nurses and 80 tons of equipment for a 90-bed field hospital, complete with a full surgical unit. The goal was to put up their tent city in 20 hours. They worked all night and 10 hours later, the doctors were operating.

THE ONLY SURGICAL HOSPITAL IN TOWN

The field hospital was truly an amazing feat. It quickly made a name for itself as the best-run and most fully equipped operation in the city. The hospital had 40 doctors and 24 nurses, as well as teams of paramedics, X-ray equipment, an emergency room, two surgery rooms, an incubation ward, a children’s ward, a maternity ward and even a pharmacy. For the first ten days it was the only place in the city where surgical operations were performed.

Whenever a complex operation was needed, the Israel team was the only place to turn. Indeed, during that time no other nation, including the US, had yet established anything remotely as advanced or comprehensive. (Ibid., 21Jan10)

Later, Radian, speaking from the field hospital, said, “The Bigio family has been the key to our success in opening the hospital just 10 hours after the Israeli army team’s January 15 arrival.”

ISRAELI “CHUTZPAH”

Tongue in cheek the command officer added, “The success of the army to accomplish its mission was greatly helped by “the Israeli chutzpah [nerve] to go to every place, to knock on the door and say, ‘Hello, we are here and this is what we need!’”

Another Israeli living in Haiti, Daniel Kedar, also played an important role in the success of the Israeli first responders. He had been flying to Israel when the earthquake occurred. Upon landing, he immediately hooked up with acquaintances from his Israeli army days, and was quickly integrated into the rescue operation. He offered the army a peerless guide to Haiti, one who knows his way around the city and speaks fluent Hebrew, French, Creole and English.

Kedar told how he became a “de facto coordinator” for Israeli forces in Haiti. “I speak the language and I know the streets,” he explained. His primary task was translating between doctors and patients, and soldiers and family members desperately looking for help to dig their relatives out ofthe rubble. (Ibid., 20Jan10)

It was Kedar who gave his personal phone number to a local radio station and asked people with tips about survivors’ whereabouts to call him.

While American generosity is unequaled and its capacity to aid a disaster area unmatched, the very size of its response hindered its ability to move as quickly as was needed. Ships such as the USNS Comfort, while a massive hospital of 900 beds, only arrived after thousands of severely wounded Haitians had suffered gangrene and died.

DOCTORS ARRIVED WITH NO MEDICAL SUPPLIES

Members of Israel's rescue team carry a man they freed from the rubble of a building that collapsed during the earthquake in Port-au-Prince.

It was not just the US that couldn’t make fast headway, but most other countries weren’t able to do much better. Some of the logistic confusion was the fault of government bureaucracy and some simply the result of the destroyed infrastructure of a city of 3,000,000. Boats could not dock because the piers had collapsed and airplanes full of medicine and food circled endlessly above the overcrowded chaotic airport which had lost its tower and lacked parking space.

American TV stations reported that even the US medical teams who rushed to Haiti arrived with no instruments. More than two dozen countries ultimately got involved in the relief effort, but the majority spent the most precious first hours and days working on plans to help, or running into all kinds of logistical difficulties – including finding the means to physically land their rescue planes in the post-quake chaos at the airport. (Ibid., 22Jan10)

Meanwhile, the Israeli teams, quietly, efficiently, and with a minimum of fuss, collected their personnel, their equipment and all their other essentials, somehow circumvented or cleared all the obstacles, and went to work. (Ibid.) The Israeli army with its vast experience from ten other disaster relief missions – not to mention its own home front – and together with its constant training, was able to offer unparalleled aid as first responders.

The Chief of General Staff said that other armies were in awe, expressing their amazement at how quickly our soldiers arrived and were ready to work. A Japanese advance team came to get advice on setting up a similar field hospital.

WORLD MEDIA TAKES NOTICE

It was the sheer expediency and expertise of the Israelis compared with the slow response of other nations that caught the attention of nearly all the news networks. NBC’s Nightly News termed the Israeli field hospital “the model of medical disaster response.” CBS branded the Israeli hospital the “Rolls Royce” of medical installations in Haiti.

CNN reported that other field hospitals contained no more than stretcher beds and medical teams who administered first aid, and they were in no way prepared for complex surgery.

Incredibly, The World Health Organization reported that eight hospitals in Port-au-Prince were destroyed or severely damaged, bringing the city’s medical infrastructure to a virtual standstill. With no medicines, the hospitals simply turned into morgues.

In such a disaster, the unexpected happens. ABC praised the Israeli mission which had assisted a birth using a complicated procedure. The network’s reporter, himself a trained doctor, came across a woman on the point of giving birth. First he tried to assist, but when he got into difficulties he remembered the Israeli field hospital and called the Israeli consulate in New York which directed him to the IDF camp.

“I understood that they were looking for the Israeli mission,” said Joel Lion, Israeli consulate spokesman. “I called the military attaché in Washington to get the address of the mission… then, via Blackberry, I managed to get the coordinates and direct them there.”

When the ABC reporter/doctor and the woman arrived at the hospital, she was taken in and eight hours later a healthy baby was born. ABC reported extensively on the story, and even sent a letter of thanks to the Israeli representative in New York.

“They were very moving moments,” said Leon. “It was amazing to be party to saving life and bringing a baby into the world. And most amazing was that it was all directed via a cell phone,” he said. “We will pass on the expressions of thanks to the doctors and the wonderful staff at the Israeli field hospital in Haiti.” (ynet.com 18Jan10)

NEWBORN NAMED “ISRAEL”

Another baby that was born premature at the field hospital made the front page of every newspaper in Israel. The grateful mother jubilantly decided to call the baby “Israel.” In Haiti most babies are not born in a hospital. But this child was delivered by one of the most famous doctors in Israel! Sadly, however, the father has been missing since the earthquake.

Emotionally, the work is taxing. “You try to suppress it,” said Dr. Amit Gill, an orthopedic surgeon, who said in the evenings he goes to the nursery to remind him of his young son back home. “There’s no medical school or training that can prepare you for this.”

But there were small miracles, such as an eight-month-old baby rescued by a neighbor after being trapped under the rubble for five days.

“FULL GAS!”

Colonel Avi Berman with baby rescued from collapsed house where his parents died during earthquake in Haiti

Israeli’s famous ability to improvise went into “full gas” as Israelis like to say. Within days, doctors had run out of external fixation nails used to stabilize fractured hips and calves. The team improvised and fashioned a new pin. They sent it to a local producer who copied it for them.

The Israel staff was unable – as was every other person there – to express the horror of the catastrophe. One American who was out in a field at the time of the earthquake described it as if he were walking on jello – or standing on a board atop a ball.

The doctors and nurses worked until they collapsed. They talked about how it was impossible for the human brain to absorb the quantity of bodies they had seen in those first few days in Haiti. The smell was indescribable. Altogether, the army pulled out of the rubble over 70 survivors. The medical delegation treated more than 1110 patients, conducted 319 successful surgeries and delivered 16 births including three in Cesarean sections.

On January 27, they folded their tents and returned to Israel, as their first responder work was finished. The massive U.S. aid coming in ships and planes was arriving. Israel left 30 tons of medical equipment for use in the ongoing aid effort and said goodbye to the IsraAID and ZAKA teams from Israel still operating in Haiti. (See third article.)

“One of Israel’s strongest critics admitted: When it’s a matter of life or death, [Israelis] have the biggest hearts. So the IDF field hospital in Haiti is a reflection of something very deep in the national character.”

The Jerusalem Post editor summed it up this way: “If you’re in trouble and you’re not trying to kill us, there’s no one like the Israelis to help you out.” (JP, 22Jan10)

Seven days after the earthquake, CNN correspondent Elizabeth Cohen came across American doctors at the city’s hopelessly ill-equipped main hospital (still open) and heard directly from Dr. Jennifer Furin, of the Harvard Medical School, speaking on camera that her patients were dying “a slow death from their rotting flesh because the infections are out of control and they need surgery.”

“The situation is beyond desperate at this point,” said Furin. “Patients were so thankful to have lived through the quake and now they’re slowly dying in these hospitals.”

Added Furin: “No one except the Israeli hospital has taken any of our patients.”

Intrigued Cohen went to check out the IDF field hospital for herself. “I’m just amazed at what’s here. This is like another world compared to the other hospital,” she marveled as she walked from Israeli tent to tent… “They have machines here! They have actual operating rooms! It’s just amazing!”

Back with Dr. Furin, Cohen asked: “So the Israelis have set up a field hospital. Have the Americans, has the American government, set up a field hospital?”

Furin: “Currently, not yet.”

Cohen: “The Israelis came from the other side of the world?!”

Furin, spreading her hands in bafflement: “It’s a frustrating thing that I really can’t explain.”

Another American doctor chipped in: “It makes you almost embarrassed to be an American.”

The IDF field hospital was not the only Israeli presence in Haiti. Two teams, comprised of search and rescue personnel and canine operators from the IDF canine unit, were sent out on rescue missions.

Another Israeli humanitarian organization, ZAKA, was just as quickly on the ground. ZAKA coordinates nearly 1000 volunteers who respond to tragic incidents in Israel. It is Israel’s main civilian rescue and recovery organization, and is also ready on a moment’s notice to use their highly-developed skills in catastrophes around the world. And it is they who are called upon to take care of the dead. Many of these volunteers are ultra-Orthodox Israelis who want to live out the Talmudic proverb: “Whoever saves a life saves an entire world.” When a situation is life-threatening, Orthodox Jews have the obligation to even break the rules of Shabbat in order to give aid.

When the Sabbath evening arrived in Haiti, the group held their Sabbath prayers amidst the ruins, and later described “a surrealistic sight of Jews wrapped in tallitot [prayer shawls] atop fallen buildings.” Many of the local people thought that the Jews were praying for the well-being of the injured and to the memory of the dead, and gathered around them to watch the prayers. Dozens of the onlookers approached the Jewish delegation when the prayer was over and kissed their tallitot.

The delegation members described their Sabbath experience as “hell,” with hundreds of bodies strewn all about with nobody there to bury them, and the stench of rotting flesh in the air.

The volunteers reported a particularly moving moment when they reached the verse “He Who looks at the earth and it quakes,” which is taken from Psalms 104 and is a part of the prayer for the new month, which fell on the Sabbath. They said that many of them shook physically at this point, when they realized for the first time what terrible consequences the verse refers to. (israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/135547)

One of the volunteers, Arele Klein, wrote, “Words cannot describe the pain and sorrow that confront us – such difficult images, so hard to bear. Men, women and children are in various states of injury, from light to critical, many with severed or dangling limbs, all waiting in line quietly. The calm is chilling. There are no cries or screams, just a line of Haitians waiting.

“We continue to receive the injured who wait patiently in line for treatment. We work like machines, but the line only seems to get longer. But who can stop at the sight of people so desperate for help?”

“I feel a strong need to put my feelings on hold, to try to work like a robot. But the strategy doesn’t work for long. When no one notices, I move away from the tent and break down, crying for the sorrow and grief that has descended on the people of Haiti. Here are human beings, people just like me, in such a state of sheer helplessness and horror.” (JP, 31Jan10)

Israel’s ZAKA rescue units – sometimes working with other nations’ units – pulled to safety about 100 survivors including eight students from the rubble of the university.

ZAKA uses its skill and experience to rescue Haitians buried under slabs of cement and rubble.Altogether Israeli volunteers and army rescued 100 survivors.

ISRAAID

There was yet another Jewish organization, IsraAID, funded by American Jews, which sent a medical team to deliver aid and set up a clinic. When a crisis of this magnitude occurs, people’s regular fences and defenses disappear. IsraAID found it beneficial to work together with Pat Robertson’s Operation Blessing – as it’s Christian humanitarian aid program had been operating in Haiti for years.

IsraAID had this to say on their website:

“Amidst the chaos of the international humanitarian response, word has spread about the successes of the IsraAID medical team operating in partnership with Operation Blessing out of the Sylvio Cator National Soccer Stadium in Port-au-Prince. Following rapid assessments, the team decided to position itself in an open-aired stadium where thousands of victims of the earthquake had sought refuge.

“While IsraAID/FIRST teams worked around the clock to provide life-saving treatment, several NGOs and medical teams from France and the US joined the relief efforts, bringing the number of medical stations operating simultaneously in the stadium to a total of 14.

“The partnerships and pooled resources, orchestrated by IsraAID/FIRST in partnership with Operation Blessing, have meant that more locals have access to urgently needed medical care. To date, well over 1,300 people have been treated and several serious cases were transferred to the IDF Field Hospital [which took the worst cases].”

“The scene here is like a war-zone,” describes Allan Schneider, an IsraAID member who is currently on the ground in Haiti.” After rounding up supplies at the airport - still a chaotic affair –we saw some teams already packing up to leave the country.

“The fact that our clinic is by now well established, serving as a magnate to local and other international teams who joined our initiative at the stadium, is proof that our mission - to jump into the breach, saving as many lives as possible under the conditions - has been achieved.” (www.israaid.org.il/)

In the back of the minds of all of the Israelis who served in Haiti, is the knowledge according to scientists, that Israel is due a terrible earthquake at any time. Approximately every 80 years Israel suffers a high-magnitude earthquake. It has been 83 years since an earthquake that registered 6.2 on the Richter scale in 1927.

As social networking continues to expand exponentially as the latest and greatest way to communicate, Maoz readers and partners have connected with us on social networks such as facebook and many others. Our blogger, Nili Shai, who writes from her desk in our Tel Aviv office, has been corresponding with hundreds of internet friends of Maoz.

They have been discussing – among other things – the ongoing persecution of believers in Israel. Especially the stubbornness of the ultra-Orthodox to give Pnina Comforti her kosher license to operate a food business, even though the High Court of Israel has ruled that she receive it. The rabbinical authorities say “no” because Pnina is an Israeli believer in Yeshua the Messiah.

Then there is the congregation in Beersheva lead by Howard Bass which experienced severe rioting during one of their services. The radical Orthodox’ goal is to harass the congregation and scare people from coming.

Thirdly, there is the case of the alleged murderer Jack Teitel, who confessed to trying to murder David and Leah Ortiz, but instead severely wounded their son Ami by planting a bomb in their home.

These three cases are just the tip of the iceberg as believers are harassed throughout Israel on a daily basis because of their faith. As every Israeli believer knows, the number one moving force organizing harassment is the radical Orthodox organization, Yad L’achim.

A few weeks ago, one of our intercessors on facebook suggested a day of fasting with our social networking friends. The idea began to snowball, and over 600 individuals actually wrote us saying they and many of their own friends would be fasting with us on February 10 to stand against these forces trying to stamp out the preaching of the Good News in Israel.

Some of those who wrote Nili Shai and Maoz said their whole church or Messianic Synagogue would be fasting. Our own congregation, Tiferet Yeshua in Tel Aviv, also joined in the fast, along with others in the land, including our friends who have been targeted by the radicals.

As we fasted, we felt the power of God being unleashed through the earnest prayers of God’s people.

Little did we know that at that very time, Calev Myers, Messianic Jewish lawyer in Jerusalem, was preparing a formal petition to Israel’s Attorney General to order the dissolution of Yad L’Achim which openly incites hatred against ethnic and religious minorities.

The petition has been presented to the Attorney General (who himself is Orthodox).

Let us continue to pray for a breakthrough against this evil organization. And God bless those of you who prayed and fasted for the democratic right to let the people of Israel know that Eternal Life awaits those who turn back to the God.

Below is Calev Myers’ press release explaining the reason for his petition to the Attorney General.

PRESS RELEASE

From the desk of Calev MyersFounder and Chief CounselJerusalem Institute of Justice

Back when Jack Teitel’s arrest was first publicized, I claimed that the attempted murder of Ami Ortiz was the rotten fruit of the daily incitement to violence promulgated, without hindrance, by extremist orthodox organizations against innocent citizens solely because of their religious affiliation.

Yad L’Achim is fertile soil for the growth of extremists who disdain the rule of law, principles of democracy, the values of the Israeli society, and human dignity.

I am not surprised that Teitel the “Jewish Terrorist” confessed, during his police interrogation, to having been an active member of Yad L’Achim; participating in their operations for five full years.

I have no doubt that Teitel’s extremist world views, steeped in radical hatred, against Arabs, left-wing activists, homosexuals, and Messianic Jews, were affected by Yad L’Achim, in which he was active for such a long time.

Even if Teitel would not have confessed in his interrogation to being a member of Yad L’achim, we would have still petitioned the Attorney General for the dissolution of this organization. I believe that we have produced ample evidence to establish the fact that Yad L’Achim carries out many illegal activities including: incitement to hatred and violence, physical violence, vandalism, and stalking and harassing ethnic and religious minorities.

Law enforcement agencies must act with uncompromising resolve against Yad L’Achim, in order to bring an end to this campaign of persecution against ethnic and religious minorities; a campaign which produced a lethal Jewish terrorist. Otherwise, it is only a matter of time until more “Teitels” appear on the scene.

Dear Maoz, We are Christians in the USA and we are standing with you in fasting and prayer for Messianic Believers in Israel.David and Susan

This is to let you know that I’m standing with you in prayer for the salvation of the persecutors and the protection of all God’s Messianic believers.Elisabeth, Holland

Yes, my wife and I are fasting and praying today for Pnina for safety and comfort and that she may get her Kosher license and that the rabbis causing issues will have their hearts softened by those bold in declaring Yeshua as Messiah.Steve and Ann

There were 10 ladies at our Bible study this morning. We decided to spend the morning in prayer with you and we decided to fast lunch as we usually go out for lunch afterwards.Beverly

Thank you for giving me an opportunity to participate in this kind of activity for the glory of Yeshua. I just want you to know that we are always praying for the peace of Israel. Here in (Arab country, name withheld), we have a Christian congregation having a prayer bond every week despite of being far from the land. Name withheld

My name is Regina, I live in Brasil, I want to tell you I´ll pray for Israel tomorrow, and I will ask the people of my church to pray together.

I, a gentile from Nigeria, would have been doomed for eternity but for Jesus Christ the Messiah who saved me. I am standing with the believers all over the world to pray for the persecuted believers, and the salvation of Israel. I will also see to it that our congregation lift up our voices tonight as I will discuss with my pastor during our prayer meeting. God save Israel! Taiwo David

My husband and I who live in Ohio will be fasting and praying. We love your people so much!Fred and Linda

I will stand with you on Wednesday and fast and pray for the persecuted believers in Israel.Jean, The King’s College and Seminary, Van Nuys, California

Thank you for giving me opportunity to participate with Maoz in prayer. I and my husband will join you all to pray.Bee Jee, Malaysia

Recently our prayer for Israel group were in touch with the Bass’ in Beer Sheva and they sent on the request to pray and fast tomorrow (10th Feb) for the various issues, especially the Messianic Body. We prayed last night and several from our group wanted to fast and pray as they were able and all of us will remember and pray tomorrow.Dorothy on behalf of PFI group

Hello, I am Soo Saeng from Seoul, Korea. I will join in prayer and fasting [morning] with you Feb. 10.

Thank you for invitation, I will pray and fast with you on 10th February. Filip, Poland

I also want to thank everyone - we will be joining of course, and we know how powerful the weapon of prayer is - and how our Father delights to answer the prayers of those whose hearts are turned to Him, and only Him for the answer.Leah Ortiz

The Canadian office of Maoz and its prayer partners will be fasting and praying with you on Feb. 10th. Together we stand united.Caroline

As a Messianic Jewish believer I have to fast and fight for our Jewish fellow-believers!Andras, Hungary

I hereby confirm my support in standing with you in fasting and prayer on February 10.Bro. Pragasen, South Africa, KZN

Yes we will stand with you. Today as I was praying I thought of Pnina. Please let her know she is not alone - blessed are those who are persecuted for His name’s sake. Peter and Petra, London

If you would like to sign up on facebook.com or any other popular site, you may become a friend of Nili Shai, our social network coordinator. Keyword: MaozIsrael.

The reason that Maoz is able to minister effectively: our dedicated and skilled team in Tel Aviv! Andthat of course does not include our staff in the US, Canada, England, Ireland, Brazil and Germany. Together, we, along with you, minister to the Lost Sheep of Israel.

We are the extension of your hands and feet as the Body of Messiah.

The pastoral staff and elders of Congregation Tiferet Yeshua (The Glory of Yeshua), Tel Aviv

Volunteer teachers and staff of children and youth departments, Congregation Tiferet Yeshua

The contributors to Maoz are the suppliers of the spiritual army as we the foot soldiers push back the kingdom of darkness. Through you we br ing the Light and the Truth to our people.

We in Israel, along with the rest of the world, were glued to the news coming out of Haiti that first week after the eartquake.

Out of those horrific days – with no one able to adequately describe what he or she was experiencing – one thing stuck out to us in a way that we had never before considered.

No human activity can successfully be accomplished without infrastructure.

The world watched in horror as old and young died for lack of food, water and medicine, while a few blocks away at the airport, thousands of tons of supplies stood stagnant, awaiting their destinations.

The richest nations on earth brought their finest offerings to the devastated people, but were thwarted at every turn.

Why were the Israel First Responders so successful? Besides exemplary training and preparation, Israel was able to tap into the resources on the ground the Bigio family and secure a place for the plan! It’s certain that Mr. Bigio, with all his business acumen and high-powered acquisitions throughout his lifetime, had no idea that his resources (soccer field, warehouse) would be just the answer to save lives!

But that is just what he did!

His words, “Tell me what you need,” still ring true. That’s the spirit of someone “for such a time as this!”

The lesson? Programs and projects are of no avail if there is not infrastructure to implement and utilize the programs.

This reality is just as true in bringing the Gospel to the people of Israel as any other human activity.

God directed Moses and the people of Israel – even in the wild waterless desert – to coordinate and organize their lives and their worship of God.

We have spent years building up an infrastructure in Israel – first of all, with highly trained and committed personnel. With only a couple thousand native Hebrew-speaking Messianic Jews in all of Israel, the labor pool for ministry work is small. So when needed we invested in our personnel by providing training in media, sound, accounting, graphic arts, and many other skills.

Little by little, we purchased computers and printers and cameras and computer programs and sound studio... and were able to rent adequate office space and a congregational facility.

But how did we do this? We didn’t do this by ourselves!

It was through the gifts you sent. The prayers you prayed. The battles you fought with us. YOU were the providers to help us put into place the infrastructure to reach our people with the Good News!

Day by day, year by year, we gained new co-laborers who opened up Maoz branches, not only in the US, but also in England, Ireland, Canada, Brazil and Germany. And one by one, new partners came on the scene to help us financially, with large and small gifts — everyone of them needed!

It is when the Body of Messiah works together, each with his own gift and portion, on the front lines... and with the wider Body of Messiah praying, fasting and giving to support the infrastructure, that God through His Body can do amazing things.

Together with you we will keep going... keep growing... keep moving... and keep effectively winning the lost... TOGETHER, we can get the job done!

Usually Israel has little to be happy about as a nation among the nations. But Israel's relief effort in Haiti was so impressive that the world media, for once, praised Israel in amazament of her astonishing rescue operations. Of course Israelis are proud! Here is the story from Israel's point of view.

It was Tuesday, just before midnight in Israel, and before turning in, we switched on Fox News for a few minutes. The anchor announced there had been a 7 plus earthquake in Haiti but no more details were available. We didn’t know the capital of Haiti already lay in ruins.

But Israel’s First Responders sprang into action. Within hours, the Israel Defense Forces dispatched a five-member team to see what assistance would be most useful. Using satellite phones the team reported that thousands of people lay dead or alive under cement slabs and some one million were living on the street while aftershocks continued to rock the city. Israel’s military translated that information as a great need for complex surgical operations of broken and smashed bones and deep wounds.

Israel’s goal was to set up a field hospital in order to provide a first response to the citizens of Haiti until the arrival of additional medical forces from other nations capable of dealing with the magnitude of the situation. Professional volunteers were not a problem. Within minutes of Israel’s decision to send a medical team, the field hospital commander received 200 phone calls. He said more than 300 doctors wanted to volunteer. (Jerusalem Post, 22Jan10)

Meanwhile, Israel’s ambassador to the eastern Caribbean, Amos Radian, was at home in Santo Domingo, when the earthquake hit. He said he felt his house shake “like mad” from the earthquake and aftershocks for 40 minutes.

ISRAELI ENTERPRISE GOES FULL THROTTLE

Radian hitched a ride with a CBS team and arrived 16 hours later in Port-au-Prince to a scene out of hell. He had been in touch with Jerusalem from the Dominican Republic and knew that by Friday two El Al planes loaded with 80 tons of supplies and 250 Israeli medical personnel would be landing in Haiti.

He teamed up with Israel’s command officer who had already arrived with his advance team. They both knew that the mission would fail if the airplanes landed in Haiti and they didn’t have a truck, bus, jeep and location.

“There was little time to fool around. They knew they had about 20 hours until the planes would land and they had nothing finalized.

But Jews live everywhere – even in Haiti – and there is always a vast Jewish network to rely on. As fortune would have it, in Haiti there is a wealthy Jewish family who could donate space and equipment such as water tanks and vehicles.

Ambassador Radian heard this family had survived the earthquake, but because all communications were down, it took the ambassador a day to locate Reuven Shalom Bigio. When he finally found Bigio at a hotel, he told him, “Tomorrow the Israel Air Force is coming with two jets and 250 people and I have no place to put them.”

Bigio’s response was immediate. “Tell me what you need.” By 8:00 a.m. the following day, the two met at an industrial park in Port-au-Prince owned by the Bigio family, along with members of the IDF Home Front Command’s advance team and Bigio offered them a family-owned soccer field to set up the field hospital.

Friday afternoon, the El Al Boeing 777 and IDF jumbo jet landed in Haiti. On board were 250 Israeli medical officers and nurses and 80 tons of equipment for a 90-bed field hospital, complete with a full surgical unit. The goal was to put up their tent city in 20 hours. They worked all night and 10 hours later, the doctors were operating.

THE ONLY SURGICAL HOSPITAL IN TOWN

The field hospital was truly an amazing feat. It quickly made a name for itself as the best-run and most fully equipped operation in the city. The hospital had 40 doctors and 24 nurses, as well as teams of paramedics, X-ray equipment, an emergency room, two surgery rooms, an incubation ward, a children’s ward, a maternity ward and even a pharmacy. For the first ten days it was the only place in the city where surgical operations were performed.

Whenever a complex operation was needed, the Israel team was the only place to turn. Indeed, during that time no other nation, including the US, had yet established anything remotely as advanced or comprehensive. (Ibid., 21Jan10)

Later, Radian, speaking from the field hospital, said, “The Bigio family has been the key to our success in opening the hospital just 10 hours after the Israeli army team’s January 15 arrival.”

ISRAELI “CHUTZPAH”

Tongue in cheek the command officer added, “The success of the army to accomplish its mission was greatly helped by “the Israeli chutzpah [nerve] to go to every place, to knock on the door and say, ‘Hello, we are here and this is what we need!’”

Another Israeli living in Haiti, Daniel Kedar, also played an important role in the success of the Israeli first responders. He had been flying to Israel when the earthquake occurred. Upon landing, he immediately hooked up with acquaintances from his Israeli army days, and was quickly integrated into the rescue operation. He offered the army a peerless guide to Haiti, one who knows his way around the city and speaks fluent Hebrew, French, Creole and English.

Kedar told how he became a “de facto coordinator” for Israeli forces in Haiti. “I speak the language and I know the streets,” he explained. His primary task was translating between doctors and patients, and soldiers and family members desperately looking for help to dig their relatives out ofthe rubble. (Ibid., 20Jan10)

It was Kedar who gave his personal phone number to a local radio station and asked people with tips about survivors’ whereabouts to call him.

While American generosity is unequaled and its capacity to aid a disaster area unmatched, the very size of its response hindered its ability to move as quickly as was needed. Ships such as the USNS Comfort, while a massive hospital of 900 beds, only arrived after thousands of severely wounded Haitians had suffered gangrene and died.

DOCTORS ARRIVED WITH NO MEDICAL SUPPLIES

Members of Israel's rescue team carry a man they freed from the rubble of a building that collapsed during the earthquake in Port-au-Prince.

It was not just the US that couldn’t make fast headway, but most other countries weren’t able to do much better. Some of the logistic confusion was the fault of government bureaucracy and some simply the result of the destroyed infrastructure of a city of 3,000,000. Boats could not dock because the piers had collapsed and airplanes full of medicine and food circled endlessly above the overcrowded chaotic airport which had lost its tower and lacked parking space.

American TV stations reported that even the US medical teams who rushed to Haiti arrived with no instruments. More than two dozen countries ultimately got involved in the relief effort, but the majority spent the most precious first hours and days working on plans to help, or running into all kinds of logistical difficulties – including finding the means to physically land their rescue planes in the post-quake chaos at the airport. (Ibid., 22Jan10)

Meanwhile, the Israeli teams, quietly, efficiently, and with a minimum of fuss, collected their personnel, their equipment and all their other essentials, somehow circumvented or cleared all the obstacles, and went to work. (Ibid.) The Israeli army with its vast experience from ten other disaster relief missions – not to mention its own home front – and together with its constant training, was able to offer unparalleled aid as first responders.

The Chief of General Staff said that other armies were in awe, expressing their amazement at how quickly our soldiers arrived and were ready to work. A Japanese advance team came to get advice on setting up a similar field hospital.

WORLD MEDIA TAKES NOTICE

It was the sheer expediency and expertise of the Israelis compared with the slow response of other nations that caught the attention of nearly all the news networks. NBC’s Nightly News termed the Israeli field hospital “the model of medical disaster response.” CBS branded the Israeli hospital the “Rolls Royce” of medical installations in Haiti.

CNN reported that other field hospitals contained no more than stretcher beds and medical teams who administered first aid, and they were in no way prepared for complex surgery.

Incredibly, The World Health Organization reported that eight hospitals in Port-au-Prince were destroyed or severely damaged, bringing the city’s medical infrastructure to a virtual standstill. With no medicines, the hospitals simply turned into morgues.

In such a disaster, the unexpected happens. ABC praised the Israeli mission which had assisted a birth using a complicated procedure. The network’s reporter, himself a trained doctor, came across a woman on the point of giving birth. First he tried to assist, but when he got into difficulties he remembered the Israeli field hospital and called the Israeli consulate in New York which directed him to the IDF camp.

“I understood that they were looking for the Israeli mission,” said Joel Lion, Israeli consulate spokesman. “I called the military attaché in Washington to get the address of the mission… then, via Blackberry, I managed to get the coordinates and direct them there.”

When the ABC reporter/doctor and the woman arrived at the hospital, she was taken in and eight hours later a healthy baby was born. ABC reported extensively on the story, and even sent a letter of thanks to the Israeli representative in New York.

“They were very moving moments,” said Leon. “It was amazing to be party to saving life and bringing a baby into the world. And most amazing was that it was all directed via a cell phone,” he said. “We will pass on the expressions of thanks to the doctors and the wonderful staff at the Israeli field hospital in Haiti.” (ynet.com 18Jan10)

NEWBORN NAMED “ISRAEL”

Another baby that was born premature at the field hospital made the front page of every newspaper in Israel. The grateful mother jubilantly decided to call the baby “Israel.” In Haiti most babies are not born in a hospital. But this child was delivered by one of the most famous doctors in Israel! Sadly, however, the father has been missing since the earthquake.

Emotionally, the work is taxing. “You try to suppress it,” said Dr. Amit Gill, an orthopedic surgeon, who said in the evenings he goes to the nursery to remind him of his young son back home. “There’s no medical school or training that can prepare you for this.”

But there were small miracles, such as an eight-month-old baby rescued by a neighbor after being trapped under the rubble for five days.

“FULL GAS!”

Colonel Avi Berman with baby rescued from collapsed house where his parents died during earthquake in Haiti

Israeli’s famous ability to improvise went into “full gas” as Israelis like to say. Within days, doctors had run out of external fixation nails used to stabilize fractured hips and calves. The team improvised and fashioned a new pin. They sent it to a local producer who copied it for them.

The Israel staff was unable – as was every other person there – to express the horror of the catastrophe. One American who was out in a field at the time of the earthquake described it as if he were walking on jello – or standing on a board atop a ball.

The doctors and nurses worked until they collapsed. They talked about how it was impossible for the human brain to absorb the quantity of bodies they had seen in those first few days in Haiti. The smell was indescribable. Altogether, the army pulled out of the rubble over 70 survivors. The medical delegation treated more than 1110 patients, conducted 319 successful surgeries and delivered 16 births including three in Cesarean sections.

On January 27, they folded their tents and returned to Israel, as their first responder work was finished. The massive U.S. aid coming in ships and planes was arriving. Israel left 30 tons of medical equipment for use in the ongoing aid effort and said goodbye to the IsraAID and ZAKA teams from Israel still operating in Haiti. (See third article.)

“One of Israel’s strongest critics admitted: When it’s a matter of life or death, [Israelis] have the biggest hearts. So the IDF field hospital in Haiti is a reflection of something very deep in the national character.”

The Jerusalem Post editor summed it up this way: “If you’re in trouble and you’re not trying to kill us, there’s no one like the Israelis to help you out.” (JP, 22Jan10)

Seven days after the earthquake, CNN correspondent Elizabeth Cohen came across American doctors at the city’s hopelessly ill-equipped main hospital (still open) and heard directly from Dr. Jennifer Furin, of the Harvard Medical School, speaking on camera that her patients were dying “a slow death from their rotting flesh because the infections are out of control and they need surgery.”

“The situation is beyond desperate at this point,” said Furin. “Patients were so thankful to have lived through the quake and now they’re slowly dying in these hospitals.”

Added Furin: “No one except the Israeli hospital has taken any of our patients.”

Intrigued Cohen went to check out the IDF field hospital for herself. “I’m just amazed at what’s here. This is like another world compared to the other hospital,” she marveled as she walked from Israeli tent to tent… “They have machines here! They have actual operating rooms! It’s just amazing!”

Back with Dr. Furin, Cohen asked: “So the Israelis have set up a field hospital. Have the Americans, has the American government, set up a field hospital?”

Furin: “Currently, not yet.”

Cohen: “The Israelis came from the other side of the world?!”

Furin, spreading her hands in bafflement: “It’s a frustrating thing that I really can’t explain.”

Another American doctor chipped in: “It makes you almost embarrassed to be an American.”

The IDF field hospital was not the only Israeli presence in Haiti. Two teams, comprised of search and rescue personnel and canine operators from the IDF canine unit, were sent out on rescue missions.

Another Israeli humanitarian organization, ZAKA, was just as quickly on the ground. ZAKA coordinates nearly 1000 volunteers who respond to tragic incidents in Israel. It is Israel’s main civilian rescue and recovery organization, and is also ready on a moment’s notice to use their highly-developed skills in catastrophes around the world. And it is they who are called upon to take care of the dead. Many of these volunteers are ultra-Orthodox Israelis who want to live out the Talmudic proverb: “Whoever saves a life saves an entire world.” When a situation is life-threatening, Orthodox Jews have the obligation to even break the rules of Shabbat in order to give aid.

When the Sabbath evening arrived in Haiti, the group held their Sabbath prayers amidst the ruins, and later described “a surrealistic sight of Jews wrapped in tallitot [prayer shawls] atop fallen buildings.” Many of the local people thought that the Jews were praying for the well-being of the injured and to the memory of the dead, and gathered around them to watch the prayers. Dozens of the onlookers approached the Jewish delegation when the prayer was over and kissed their tallitot.

The delegation members described their Sabbath experience as “hell,” with hundreds of bodies strewn all about with nobody there to bury them, and the stench of rotting flesh in the air.

The volunteers reported a particularly moving moment when they reached the verse “He Who looks at the earth and it quakes,” which is taken from Psalms 104 and is a part of the prayer for the new month, which fell on the Sabbath. They said that many of them shook physically at this point, when they realized for the first time what terrible consequences the verse refers to. (israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/135547)

One of the volunteers, Arele Klein, wrote, “Words cannot describe the pain and sorrow that confront us – such difficult images, so hard to bear. Men, women and children are in various states of injury, from light to critical, many with severed or dangling limbs, all waiting in line quietly. The calm is chilling. There are no cries or screams, just a line of Haitians waiting.

“We continue to receive the injured who wait patiently in line for treatment. We work like machines, but the line only seems to get longer. But who can stop at the sight of people so desperate for help?”

“I feel a strong need to put my feelings on hold, to try to work like a robot. But the strategy doesn’t work for long. When no one notices, I move away from the tent and break down, crying for the sorrow and grief that has descended on the people of Haiti. Here are human beings, people just like me, in such a state of sheer helplessness and horror.” (JP, 31Jan10)

Israel’s ZAKA rescue units – sometimes working with other nations’ units – pulled to safety about 100 survivors including eight students from the rubble of the university.

ZAKA uses its skill and experience to rescue Haitians buried under slabs of cement and rubble.Altogether Israeli volunteers and army rescued 100 survivors.

ISRAAID

There was yet another Jewish organization, IsraAID, funded by American Jews, which sent a medical team to deliver aid and set up a clinic. When a crisis of this magnitude occurs, people’s regular fences and defenses disappear. IsraAID found it beneficial to work together with Pat Robertson’s Operation Blessing – as it’s Christian humanitarian aid program had been operating in Haiti for years.

IsraAID had this to say on their website:

“Amidst the chaos of the international humanitarian response, word has spread about the successes of the IsraAID medical team operating in partnership with Operation Blessing out of the Sylvio Cator National Soccer Stadium in Port-au-Prince. Following rapid assessments, the team decided to position itself in an open-aired stadium where thousands of victims of the earthquake had sought refuge.

“While IsraAID/FIRST teams worked around the clock to provide life-saving treatment, several NGOs and medical teams from France and the US joined the relief efforts, bringing the number of medical stations operating simultaneously in the stadium to a total of 14.

“The partnerships and pooled resources, orchestrated by IsraAID/FIRST in partnership with Operation Blessing, have meant that more locals have access to urgently needed medical care. To date, well over 1,300 people have been treated and several serious cases were transferred to the IDF Field Hospital [which took the worst cases].”

“The scene here is like a war-zone,” describes Allan Schneider, an IsraAID member who is currently on the ground in Haiti.” After rounding up supplies at the airport - still a chaotic affair –we saw some teams already packing up to leave the country.

“The fact that our clinic is by now well established, serving as a magnate to local and other international teams who joined our initiative at the stadium, is proof that our mission - to jump into the breach, saving as many lives as possible under the conditions - has been achieved.” (www.israaid.org.il/)

In the back of the minds of all of the Israelis who served in Haiti, is the knowledge according to scientists, that Israel is due a terrible earthquake at any time. Approximately every 80 years Israel suffers a high-magnitude earthquake. It has been 83 years since an earthquake that registered 6.2 on the Richter scale in 1927.

As social networking continues to expand exponentially as the latest and greatest way to communicate, Maoz readers and partners have connected with us on social networks such as facebook and many others. Our blogger, Nili Shai, who writes from her desk in our Tel Aviv office, has been corresponding with hundreds of internet friends of Maoz.

They have been discussing – among other things – the ongoing persecution of believers in Israel. Especially the stubbornness of the ultra-Orthodox to give Pnina Comforti her kosher license to operate a food business, even though the High Court of Israel has ruled that she receive it. The rabbinical authorities say “no” because Pnina is an Israeli believer in Yeshua the Messiah.

Then there is the congregation in Beersheva lead by Howard Bass which experienced severe rioting during one of their services. The radical Orthodox’ goal is to harass the congregation and scare people from coming.

Thirdly, there is the case of the alleged murderer Jack Teitel, who confessed to trying to murder David and Leah Ortiz, but instead severely wounded their son Ami by planting a bomb in their home.

These three cases are just the tip of the iceberg as believers are harassed throughout Israel on a daily basis because of their faith. As every Israeli believer knows, the number one moving force organizing harassment is the radical Orthodox organization, Yad L’achim.

A few weeks ago, one of our intercessors on facebook suggested a day of fasting with our social networking friends. The idea began to snowball, and over 600 individuals actually wrote us saying they and many of their own friends would be fasting with us on February 10 to stand against these forces trying to stamp out the preaching of the Good News in Israel.

Some of those who wrote Nili Shai and Maoz said their whole church or Messianic Synagogue would be fasting. Our own congregation, Tiferet Yeshua in Tel Aviv, also joined in the fast, along with others in the land, including our friends who have been targeted by the radicals.

As we fasted, we felt the power of God being unleashed through the earnest prayers of God’s people.

Little did we know that at that very time, Calev Myers, Messianic Jewish lawyer in Jerusalem, was preparing a formal petition to Israel’s Attorney General to order the dissolution of Yad L’Achim which openly incites hatred against ethnic and religious minorities.

The petition has been presented to the Attorney General (who himself is Orthodox).

Let us continue to pray for a breakthrough against this evil organization. And God bless those of you who prayed and fasted for the democratic right to let the people of Israel know that Eternal Life awaits those who turn back to the God.

Below is Calev Myers’ press release explaining the reason for his petition to the Attorney General.

PRESS RELEASE

From the desk of Calev MyersFounder and Chief CounselJerusalem Institute of Justice

Back when Jack Teitel’s arrest was first publicized, I claimed that the attempted murder of Ami Ortiz was the rotten fruit of the daily incitement to violence promulgated, without hindrance, by extremist orthodox organizations against innocent citizens solely because of their religious affiliation.

Yad L’Achim is fertile soil for the growth of extremists who disdain the rule of law, principles of democracy, the values of the Israeli society, and human dignity.

I am not surprised that Teitel the “Jewish Terrorist” confessed, during his police interrogation, to having been an active member of Yad L’Achim; participating in their operations for five full years.

I have no doubt that Teitel’s extremist world views, steeped in radical hatred, against Arabs, left-wing activists, homosexuals, and Messianic Jews, were affected by Yad L’Achim, in which he was active for such a long time.

Even if Teitel would not have confessed in his interrogation to being a member of Yad L’achim, we would have still petitioned the Attorney General for the dissolution of this organization. I believe that we have produced ample evidence to establish the fact that Yad L’Achim carries out many illegal activities including: incitement to hatred and violence, physical violence, vandalism, and stalking and harassing ethnic and religious minorities.

Law enforcement agencies must act with uncompromising resolve against Yad L’Achim, in order to bring an end to this campaign of persecution against ethnic and religious minorities; a campaign which produced a lethal Jewish terrorist. Otherwise, it is only a matter of time until more “Teitels” appear on the scene.

Dear Maoz, We are Christians in the USA and we are standing with you in fasting and prayer for Messianic Believers in Israel.David and Susan

This is to let you know that I’m standing with you in prayer for the salvation of the persecutors and the protection of all God’s Messianic believers.Elisabeth, Holland

Yes, my wife and I are fasting and praying today for Pnina for safety and comfort and that she may get her Kosher license and that the rabbis causing issues will have their hearts softened by those bold in declaring Yeshua as Messiah.Steve and Ann

There were 10 ladies at our Bible study this morning. We decided to spend the morning in prayer with you and we decided to fast lunch as we usually go out for lunch afterwards.Beverly

Thank you for giving me an opportunity to participate in this kind of activity for the glory of Yeshua. I just want you to know that we are always praying for the peace of Israel. Here in (Arab country, name withheld), we have a Christian congregation having a prayer bond every week despite of being far from the land. Name withheld

My name is Regina, I live in Brasil, I want to tell you I´ll pray for Israel tomorrow, and I will ask the people of my church to pray together.

I, a gentile from Nigeria, would have been doomed for eternity but for Jesus Christ the Messiah who saved me. I am standing with the believers all over the world to pray for the persecuted believers, and the salvation of Israel. I will also see to it that our congregation lift up our voices tonight as I will discuss with my pastor during our prayer meeting. God save Israel! Taiwo David

My husband and I who live in Ohio will be fasting and praying. We love your people so much!Fred and Linda

I will stand with you on Wednesday and fast and pray for the persecuted believers in Israel.Jean, The King’s College and Seminary, Van Nuys, California

Thank you for giving me opportunity to participate with Maoz in prayer. I and my husband will join you all to pray.Bee Jee, Malaysia

Recently our prayer for Israel group were in touch with the Bass’ in Beer Sheva and they sent on the request to pray and fast tomorrow (10th Feb) for the various issues, especially the Messianic Body. We prayed last night and several from our group wanted to fast and pray as they were able and all of us will remember and pray tomorrow.Dorothy on behalf of PFI group

Hello, I am Soo Saeng from Seoul, Korea. I will join in prayer and fasting [morning] with you Feb. 10.

Thank you for invitation, I will pray and fast with you on 10th February. Filip, Poland

I also want to thank everyone - we will be joining of course, and we know how powerful the weapon of prayer is - and how our Father delights to answer the prayers of those whose hearts are turned to Him, and only Him for the answer.Leah Ortiz

The Canadian office of Maoz and its prayer partners will be fasting and praying with you on Feb. 10th. Together we stand united.Caroline

As a Messianic Jewish believer I have to fast and fight for our Jewish fellow-believers!Andras, Hungary

I hereby confirm my support in standing with you in fasting and prayer on February 10.Bro. Pragasen, South Africa, KZN

Yes we will stand with you. Today as I was praying I thought of Pnina. Please let her know she is not alone - blessed are those who are persecuted for His name’s sake. Peter and Petra, London

If you would like to sign up on facebook.com or any other popular site, you may become a friend of Nili Shai, our social network coordinator. Keyword: MaozIsrael.

The reason that Maoz is able to minister effectively: our dedicated and skilled team in Tel Aviv! Andthat of course does not include our staff in the US, Canada, England, Ireland, Brazil and Germany. Together, we, along with you, minister to the Lost Sheep of Israel.

We are the extension of your hands and feet as the Body of Messiah.

The pastoral staff and elders of Congregation Tiferet Yeshua (The Glory of Yeshua), Tel Aviv

Volunteer teachers and staff of children and youth departments, Congregation Tiferet Yeshua

The contributors to Maoz are the suppliers of the spiritual army as we the foot soldiers push back the kingdom of darkness. Through you we br ing the Light and the Truth to our people.

We in Israel, along with the rest of the world, were glued to the news coming out of Haiti that first week after the eartquake.

Out of those horrific days – with no one able to adequately describe what he or she was experiencing – one thing stuck out to us in a way that we had never before considered.

No human activity can successfully be accomplished without infrastructure.

The world watched in horror as old and young died for lack of food, water and medicine, while a few blocks away at the airport, thousands of tons of supplies stood stagnant, awaiting their destinations.

The richest nations on earth brought their finest offerings to the devastated people, but were thwarted at every turn.

Why were the Israel First Responders so successful? Besides exemplary training and preparation, Israel was able to tap into the resources on the ground the Bigio family and secure a place for the plan! It’s certain that Mr. Bigio, with all his business acumen and high-powered acquisitions throughout his lifetime, had no idea that his resources (soccer field, warehouse) would be just the answer to save lives!

But that is just what he did!

His words, “Tell me what you need,” still ring true. That’s the spirit of someone “for such a time as this!”

The lesson? Programs and projects are of no avail if there is not infrastructure to implement and utilize the programs.

This reality is just as true in bringing the Gospel to the people of Israel as any other human activity.

God directed Moses and the people of Israel – even in the wild waterless desert – to coordinate and organize their lives and their worship of God.

We have spent years building up an infrastructure in Israel – first of all, with highly trained and committed personnel. With only a couple thousand native Hebrew-speaking Messianic Jews in all of Israel, the labor pool for ministry work is small. So when needed we invested in our personnel by providing training in media, sound, accounting, graphic arts, and many other skills.

Little by little, we purchased computers and printers and cameras and computer programs and sound studio... and were able to rent adequate office space and a congregational facility.

But how did we do this? We didn’t do this by ourselves!

It was through the gifts you sent. The prayers you prayed. The battles you fought with us. YOU were the providers to help us put into place the infrastructure to reach our people with the Good News!

Day by day, year by year, we gained new co-laborers who opened up Maoz branches, not only in the US, but also in England, Ireland, Canada, Brazil and Germany. And one by one, new partners came on the scene to help us financially, with large and small gifts — everyone of them needed!

It is when the Body of Messiah works together, each with his own gift and portion, on the front lines... and with the wider Body of Messiah praying, fasting and giving to support the infrastructure, that God through His Body can do amazing things.

Together with you we will keep going... keep growing... keep moving... and keep effectively winning the lost... TOGETHER, we can get the job done!